Business Review 1996/1997

Research and Development

Third Generation Cellular Mobile Radio

The next or third generation cellular mobile radio, known within Europe as Universal Mobile Telecommunications Systems (UMTS), is expected to offer broad band multimedia services in addition to basic services such as voice telephony.

The UK industrial advisory group, known as Third Generation Advisory Group, having published a consultative document in February 1997, is continuing to provide a forum for achieving a general consensus towards a UK vision for third generation systems. Both the Agency and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) continue to participate in these discussions. A DTI consultative document on third generation cellular mobile radio will also be issued later in 1997.

The Agency is also participating in the European standardisation work, being undertaken by ETSI and at the UMTS Forum, set up with the assistance of the European Commission to ensure the success of UMTS as a world-wide system. Having participated in the preparation of an ERC Decision on UMTS, the Agency will be taking necessary steps to identify the frequency bands for the implementation of UMTS, by the year 2002. Moreover, the Agency will continue to provide the lead for the ITU-R Task Group 8/1 work in achieving global consensus on various aspects of third generation systems.

Contents